Objective of the Game

Welcome, aspiring city-builders and cunning strategists! In **Citadels**, your goal is to become the most prestigious architect in the land. You'll do this by constructing magnificent buildings in your city, accumulating wealth, and outmaneuvering your rivals. The game ends when a player completes their **eighth building**, triggering a final scoring where the player with the most points wins!

Preparation (Setup)

Let's get your city-building empire ready!

1. Separate the eight **Character cards** into one deck and all **Construction cards** into another.
2. Place the 30 **coins** in the center of the table, forming the bank.
3. Shuffle the **Construction card** deck.
4. Each player receives 2 **coins** and 4 **Construction cards**, which they keep in their hand.
5. Decide who will be the first **King** (e.g., by rolling dice or drawing lots). This player takes the **crown**.
6. The **King** shuffles the eight **Character cards** (without looking at them).
7. The **King** then draws two **Character cards** and places them face-up next to each other on the table. If the **King** character card is among these two, it must be re-shuffled back into the deck, and a new card drawn.
8. Next, the **King** draws one more **Character card** and places it face-down next to the two face-up cards. (This setup is for four players; the number of face-up and face-down cards varies with player count, as detailed in the manual's table for 3-7 players).
9. The **King** then looks at the remaining **Character cards** in their hand, chooses one to keep, and passes the remaining cards to the player on their left.
10. The next player takes the **Character cards**, chooses one, and passes the rest to the player on their left, and so on.
11. The last player receives two cards and must choose one. The remaining card is placed face-down next to the other face-down **Character cards** on the table.

The Game Turn

A round in Citadels is all about calling characters and executing their unique actions.

1. The **King** begins by calling characters in numerical order: 1-Assassin, 2-Thief, 3-Magician, 4-King, 5-Bishop, 6-Merchant, 7-Architect, 8-Warlord.
2. When a character is called, the player holding that **Character card** must reveal it and perform their character's actions.
3. Each player's turn consists of two mandatory actions and several optional actions, which can be performed in any order:
   • Mandatory Action 1: Income
     • Take two **coins** from the bank, OR
     • Draw two **Construction cards**, choose one to keep, and discard the other face-down into a discard pile.
   • Optional Action 1: Use Character's Main Ability
     • Assassin: Declare a character to kill. The player with the killed character remains silent and cannot act when their character is called. They only reveal their card and state they were assassinated at the end of the round.
     • Thief: Declare a character to rob. When that character is called, the Thief takes all their **coins**. The Thief cannot rob the Assassin or the assassinated character.
     • Magician: Exchange all cards in your hand with all cards from an opponent's hand, OR exchange any number of cards from your hand with the same number of cards from the **Construction card** deck.
     • King: Immediately take the **crown** and will be the **King** in the next round. The King receives one **coin** for each noble (yellow) building in their city.
     • Bishop: Cannot be attacked by the Warlord. The Bishop receives one **coin** for each religious (blue) building in their city.
     • Merchant: Receives one extra **coin** at the start of their turn (allowing them to take three **coins** or one card and one **coin**). The Merchant receives one **coin** for each mercantile (green) building in their city.
     • Architect: Can build up to three buildings. Also draws two extra **Construction cards** (in addition to the regular income choice of drawing two and keeping one, or taking two **coins**).
     • Warlord: Can destroy one building from an opponent's city or their own. To do so, they must pay the building's cost minus one **coin**. The Warlord cannot attack a city that already has eight buildings. The Warlord receives one **coin** for each military (red) building in their city.
   • Optional Action 2: Use Character's Passive Income (if applicable)
     • Some characters, like the King, Bishop, Merchant, and Warlord, receive **coins** based on the color of buildings in their city.
   • Optional Action 3: Build a Construction
     • Play one **Construction card** from your hand to your city, paying its **coin** cost to the bank. These buildings form your city.
4. After all eight characters have been called, the round ends. If the **crown** has passed to a new player, they become the **King** and initiate the procedures from step 5 of the Setup for the next round.

End of Game and Scoring

The game concludes swiftly once a player achieves a major milestone!

1. The game ends at the end of the round in which a player constructs their **eighth building**, even if one of their buildings is immediately destroyed by the Warlord.
2. Points are then tallied as follows:
   • Sum the **coin costs** of all buildings in your city (the value on the left side of the cards).
   • The first player to construct their **eighth building** receives an additional 4 points.
   • Any other players who also have eight buildings receive an additional 2 points.
   • If your city contains buildings of five different colors, you receive an additional 3 points.
   • Special violet buildings may have unique scoring conditions (e.g., **Dracoport** and **University** are worth 8 points instead of their 6 **coin** cost; **Imperial Treasury** grants 1 point for each **coin** you possess; **Fountain of Wishes** grants 1 extra point for each violet building in your city).

The player with the highest total score wins!

Tips for Winning

Mastering Citadels requires a blend of planning and adaptability. Here are a few pointers to get you started:

1. Adapt Your Character Choice: Don't always pick the same character! Observe your opponents' cities and their current **coin** count. If someone is close to winning, consider the **Assassin** or **Warlord** to slow them down. If you need **coins**, the **Merchant** or **King** (with noble buildings) can be great.
2. Manage Your Hand and Gold: Buildings are your path to victory, but they cost **coins**! Prioritize getting income early. Don't be afraid to draw cards if your hand is weak, but remember you can only build one per turn (unless you're the **Architect**).
3. Watch for Colors and Milestones: Aim for a diverse city with buildings of all five colors to grab those bonus points. Also, keep an eye on who is close to building their eighth structure – that's the endgame trigger!